Essential business

On March 23, 2020, Governor Inslee issued an Executive Order directing all residents immediately to heed current State public health directives to stay home, except as needed to maintain continuity of operations of essential critical infrastructure sectors and additional sectors as the State Public Health Officer may designate as critical to protect the health and well-being of all Washingtonians.

In accordance with this order, the Governor has designated the following list of “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers” to help state, local, tribal, and industry partners as they work to protect communities while ensuring continuity of functions critical to public health and safety, as well as economic and national security.

HEALTHCARE / PUBLIC HEALTH

Sector Profile

The Healthcare and Public Health (HPH) Sector is large, diverse, and open, spanning both the public and private sectors. It includes publicly accessible healthcare facilities, research centers, suppliers, manufacturers, and other physical assets and vast, complex public-private information technology systems required for care delivery and to support the rapid, secure transmission and storage of large amounts of HPH data.

Essential Workforce

Workers providing COVID-19 testing and workers that perform critical clinical research and development needed for COVID-19 response.

Workers who provide support to vulnerable populations to ensure their health and well-being including family care providers.

Workers performing cybersecurity functions at healthcare and public health facilities, who cannot practically work remotely.

Workers conducting research critical to COVID-19 response. Workers performing security, incident management, and emergency operations functions at or on behalf of healthcare entities including healthcare coalitions, who cannot practically work remotely.

Workers who support food, shelter, and social services, and other necessities of life for economically disadvantaged or otherwise needy individuals, such as those residing in shelters.

Workers who coordinate with other organizations to ensure the proper recovery, handling, identification, transportation, tracking, storage, and disposal of human remains and personal effects; certify cause of death; and facilitate access to behavioral health services to the family members, responders, and survivors of an incident.

EMERGENCY SERVICES SECTOR

Sector Profile

The Emergency Services Sector (ESS) is a community of highly-skilled, trained personnel, along with the physical and cyber resources, that provide a wide range of prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery services during both day-to-day operations and incident response. The ESS includes geographically distributed facilities and equipment in both paid and volunteer capacities organized primarily at the federal, state, local, tribal, and territorial levels of government, such as city police departments and fire stations, county sheriff’s offices, Department of Defense police and fire departments, and town public works departments. The ESS also includes private sector resources, such as industrial fire departments, private security organizations, and private emergency medical services providers.

Essential Workforce - Law Enforcement, Public Safety and First Responders

Including front line and management, personnel includes emergency management, law enforcement, Emergency Management Systems, fire, and corrections, search and rescue, tactical teams including maritime, aviation, and canine units.

Military personnel, including National Guard personnel and Coast Guard personnel.

Emergency Medical Technicians.

Public Safety Answering Points and 911 call center employees.

Fusion Center employees.

Fire Mitigation Activities.

Hazardous material responders and hazardous devices teams, from government and the private sector.

Protective services workers responsible for mission-critical functions in state institutions, programs, and community facilities, including homeless shelters.

Essential Workforce - Public Works

Workers who support the operation, inspection, and maintenance of essential dams, locks and levees.

Workers who support the operation, inspection, and maintenance of essential public works facilities and operations, including bridges, water and sewer main breaks, fleet maintenance personnel, construction of critical or strategic infrastructure, traffic signal maintenance, emergency location services for buried utilities, maintenance of digital systems infrastructure supporting public works operations, and other emergent issues.

Workers such as plumbers, electricians, exterminators, and other service providers who provide services that are necessary to maintain the safety, sanitation, and essential operation of residences.

Support, such as road and line clearing, to ensure the availability of needed facilities, transportation, energy and communications. Support to ensure the effective removal, storage, and disposal of residential and commercial solid waste and hazardous waste.

FOOD AND AGRICULTURE

Sector Profile

The Food and Agricultural (FA) Sector is composed of complex production, processing, and delivery systems and has the capacity to feed people and animals both within and beyond the boundaries of the United States. Beyond domestic food production, the FA Sector also imports many ingredients and finished products, leading to a complex web of growers, processors, suppliers, transporters, distributors, and consumers. This sector is critical to maintaining and securing our food supply.

Workers supporting the sanitation of all food manufacturing processes and operations from wholesale to retail.

Company cafeterias - in-plant cafeterias used to feed employees.

Workers in food testing labs in private industries and in institutions of higher education.

Workers essential for assistance programs and government payments.

Workers supporting cannabis retail and dietary supplement retail.

Employees of companies engaged in the production of chemicals, medicines, vaccines, and other substances used by the food and agriculture industry, including pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, minerals, enrichments, and other agricultural production aids.

Animal agriculture workers to include those employed in veterinary health; manufacturing and distribution of animal medical materials, animal vaccines, animal drugs, feed. ingredients, feed, and bedding, etc.; transportation of live animals, animal medical materials; transportation of deceased animals for disposal; raising of animals for food; animal production operations; slaughter and packing plants and associated regulatory and government workforce.

Workers who support the manufacture and distribution of forest products, including, but not limited to timber, paper, and other wood products.

Employees engaged in the manufacture and maintenance of equipment and other infrastructure necessary for agricultural production and distribution.

ENERGY

Sector Profile

The Energy Sector consists of widely-diverse and geographically-dispersed critical assets and systems that are often interdependent of one another. This critical infrastructure is divided into three interrelated segments or subsectors—electricity, oil, and natural gas—to include the production, refining, storage, and distribution of oil, gas, and electric power, except for hydroelectric and commercial nuclear power facilities and pipelines. The Energy Sector supplies fuels to the transportation industry, electricity to households and businesses, and other sources of energy that are integral to growth and production across the Nation. In turn, it depends on the Nation’s transportation, information technology, communications, finance, water, and government infrastructures.

Workers at Reliability Coordinator (RC), Balancing Authorities (BA), and primary and backup Control Centers (CC), including but not limited to independent system operators, regional transmission organizations, and balancing authorities.

Mutual assistance personnel.

IT and OT technology staff – for Energy Management System and Supervisory Control and Data.

Drilling, production, processing, refining, and transporting natural gas for use as end-use fuels, feedstocks for chemical manufacturing, or use in electricity generation.

Propane gas dispatch and control rooms and emergency response and customer emergencies, including propane leak calls.

Propane gas service maintenance and restoration, including call centers.

Processing, refining, and transporting natural liquids, including propane gas, for use as end-use fuels or feedstocks for chemical manufacturing.

Propane gas storage, transmission, and distribution centers.

WATER AND WASTEWATER

Sector Profile

The Water and Wastewater Sector is a complex sector composed of drinking water and wastewater infrastructure of varying sizes and ownership types. Multiple governing authorities pertaining to the Water and Wastewater Sector provide for public health, environmental protection, and security measures, among others.

Essential Workforce

Employees needed to operate and maintain drinking water and wastewater/drainage infrastructure, including:

Operational staff at water authorities.

Operational staff at community water systems.

Operational staff at wastewater treatment facilities.

Workers repairing water and wastewater conveyances and performing required sampling or monitoring.

TRANSPORTATION AND LOGISTICS

Sector Profile

Aviation includes aircraft, air traffic control systems, and airports, heliports, and landing strips.

Commercial aviation services at civil and joint-use military airports, heliports, and seaplane bases. In addition, the aviation mode includes commercial and recreational aircraft (manned and unmanned) and a wide variety of support services, such as aircraft repair stations, fueling facilities, navigation aids, and flight schools.

Maritime Transportation System consists of ferries, coastline, ports, pilotage, waterways, and intermodal landside connections that allow the various modes of transportation to move people and goods to, from, and on the water.

Postal and Shipping includes large integrated carriers, regional and local courier services, mail services, mail management firms, and chartered and delivery services.

Essential Workforce

Employees supporting or enabling transportation functions, including dispatchers, maintenance and repair technicians, warehouse workers, truck stop and rest area workers, workers engaged in snow removal and avalanche control for state highways, and workers that maintain and inspect infrastructure (including those that require cross-border travel).

Employees of firms providing services that enable logistics operations, including cooling, storing, packaging, and distributing products for wholesale or retail sale or use.

Truck drivers who haul hazardous and waste materials to support critical infrastructure, capabilities, functions, and services.

Automotive, motorcycle, bicycle and motorized wheelchair/scooter repair and maintenance facilities. Only the minimum number of workers required to support or provide a service may be in an enclosed space at the same time, and all activities must comply with the social distancing and sanitation measures established in Proclamation 20-25.

Manufacturers and distributors (to include service centers and related operations) of packaging materials, pallets, crates, containers, and other supplies needed to support manufacturing, packaging staging and distribution operations.

Postal and shipping workers, including private companies.

Employees who repair and maintain vehicles, aircraft, rail equipment, marine vessels, and the equipment and infrastructure that enables operations that encompass the movement of cargo and passengers.

Workers who support the maintenance and operation of cargo by air transportation, including flight crews, maintenance, airport operations, and other on- and off-airport facilities workers.

Limited sales and leasing activities at licensed new and used car and truck dealerships are deemed essential only if those activities are to close a pending transaction that began before Governor Inslee’s Proclamation 20-25 was issued or replace a totaled vehicle, replace a damaged vehicle that is impractical to repair, extend a lease that expires, or provide transportation to essential workers, as identified in the “Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers” list, Appendix to Proclamation 20-25, if the essential worker has no other means of transportation. Any activity meeting the above criteria must still comply with the following: on-site visits to the dealership are by appointment only and must be scheduled remotely; only 1 dealership employee may be present in the dealership building (showroom or office) at any one time, and that employee may only be present during the duration of the sale; as part of the sales transaction, the buyer must certify that the purchase is essential for one of the reasons provided above; all activities must be conducted in a manner that complies with social distancing and sanitation measures established in Proclamation 20-25.

COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

Sector Profile

The Communications Sector provides products and services that support the efficient operation of today’s global information-based society. Communication networks enable people around the world to contact one another, access information instantly, and communicate from remote areas. This involves creating a link between a sender (including voice signals) and one or more recipients using technology (e.g., a telephone system or the Internet) to transmit information from one location to another.

Technologies are changing at a rapid pace, increasing the number of products, services, service providers, and communication options. The national communications architecture is a complex collection of networks that are owned and operated by individual service providers. Many of this sector’s products and services are foundational or necessary for the operations and services provided by other critical infrastructure sectors. The nature of communication networks involves both physical infrastructure (buildings, switches, towers, antennas, etc.) and cyberinfrastructure (routing and switching software, operational support systems, user applications, etc.), representing a holistic challenge to address the entire physical-cyber infrastructure.

The IT Sector provides products and services that support the efficient operation of today’s global information-based society and are integral to the operations and services provided by other critical infrastructure Sectors. The IT Sector is comprised of small and medium businesses, as well as large multinational companies. Unlike many critical infrastructure Sectors composed of finite and easily identifiable physical assets, the IT Sector is a function-based Sector that comprises not only physical assets but also virtual systems and networks that enable key capabilities and services in both the public and private sectors.

Workers who support radio, television, newspapers and media service, including, but not limited to front line news reporters, studio, and technicians for newsgathering and reporting, and workers involved in the printing and distribution of newspapers.

Workers at Independent System Operators and Regional Transmission Organizations, and Network Operations staff, engineers and/or technicians to manage the network or operate facilities.

Engineers, technicians and associated personnel responsible for infrastructure construction and restoration, including contractors for construction and engineering of fiber optic cables.

Installation, maintenance and repair technicians that establish, support or repair service as needed.

Customer service and support staff, including managed and professional services as well as remote providers of support to transitioning employees to set up and maintain home offices, who interface with customers to manage or support service environments and security issues, including payroll, billing, fraud, and troubleshooting.

Dispatchers involved with service repair and restoration.

Essential Workforce - Information Technology

Workers who support command centers, including, but not limited to Network Operations Command Center, Broadcast Operations Control Center and Security Operations Command Center.

Client service centers, field engineers, and other technicians supporting critical infrastructure, as well as manufacturers and supply chain vendors that provide hardware and software, and information technology equipment (to include microelectronics and semiconductors) for critical infrastructure.

Workers supporting the provision of essential global, national and local infrastructure for computing services (incl. cloud computing services), business infrastructure, web-based services, and critical manufacturing.

Workers supporting communications systems and information technology used by law enforcement, public safety, medical, energy and other critical industries.

Support required for continuity of services, including janitorial/cleaning personnel.

OTHER COMMUNITY-BASED GOVERNMENT OPERATIONS AND ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS

Essential Workforce

Critical government workers, including the Governor’s Office, as defined by the employer and consistent with Continuity of Operations Plans and Continuity of Government plans.

State and county workers responsible for determining eligibility for safety-net benefits.

Workers responsible for facilitating return to work resources.

The Courts, consistent with direction from the Washington State Chief Justice.

Workers to ensure continuity of building functions.

Security staff to maintain building access control and physical security measures.

Elections personnel.

Federal, State, and Local, Tribal, and Territorial employees who support Mission Essential Functions and communications networks.

Workers at operations centers necessary to maintain other essential functions.

Workers who support necessary credentialing, vetting and licensing operations for transportation workers.

Workers who are critical to facilitating trade in support of the national, state, and local emergency response supply chain.

Workers supporting public and private childcare establishments, licensed pre-K establishments, K- 12 schools, colleges, and universities for purposes of distance learning, or the provision of school meals, or child care for the children of essential workers across all sectors and for uniquely vulnerable children.

Hotel workers.

Construction workers who support the construction, operation, inspection, and maintenance of construction sites and construction projects (including housing construction) for all essential facilities, services and projects included in this document, and for residential construction related to emergency repairs and projects that ensure structural integrity.

Workers such as plumbers, electricians, exterminators, and other service providers who provide services that are necessary to maintain the safety, sanitation, and essential operation of construction sites and construction projects (including those that support such projects to ensure the availability of needed facilities, transportation, energy and communications; and support to ensure the effective removal, storage, and disposal of solid waste and hazardous waste).

Commercial retail stores, that supply essential sectors, including convenience stores, pet supply stores, auto supplies and repair, hardware and home improvement, garden stores and nurseries that support food cultivation and production, office supply stores that support working-from-home, and home appliance retailers.

Workers critical to operating rental car companies that facilitate continuity of operations for essential workforces, and other essential travel.

Workers who provide or determine eligibility for food, shelter, in-home supportive services, child welfare, adult protective services and social services, and other necessities of life for economically disadvantaged or otherwise needy individuals (including family members and individuals experiencing homelessness).

Professional services, such as legal or accounting and tax preparation services, when necessary to assist in compliance with legally mandated activities and critical sector services.

Artists and musicians providing services through streaming or other technology.

Outdoor maintenance, including vegetation, is deemed essential only when necessary to prevent spoliation, avoid imminent damage, or address emergency repairs.

Retail which is, in part, deemed essential shall, in total, be deemed essential. This does not apply to non-essential retail that is easily separable from the essential retail area. Easily separable means separate locations or buildings, separate staff, etc., such that the closure of the nonessential retail portion will not affect the essential portion.

Tobacco and vapor sellers are deemed essential if they sell food.

Nannies and other persons who are providing childcare in the child’s own home are essential workers if they are caring for the children of essential workers.

Camping and workers supporting private campgrounds. Please be mindful that private campgrounds will remain open to ensure that long-term residents are not displaced. To the greatest extent possible, avoid using this bulletin to justify vacationing in an unsafe manner.

CRITICAL MANUFACTURING

Sector Profile

The Critical Manufacturing Sector identifies several industries to serve as the core of the sector: Primary Metals Manufacturing, Machinery Manufacturing, Electrical Equipment, Appliance, and Component Manufacturing, Transportation Equipment Manufacturing Products made by these manufacturing industries are essential to many other critical infrastructure sectors.

Essential Workforce

Workers necessary for the manufacturing of materials and products needed for medical supply chains, transportation, energy, communications, food and agriculture, chemical manufacturing, nuclear facilities, the operation of dams, water and wastewater treatment, emergency services, and the defense industrial base.

FINANCIAL SERVICES

Sector Profile

The Financial Services Sector includes thousands of depository institutions, providers of investment products, insurance companies, other credit and financing organizations, and the providers of the critical financial utilities and services that support these functions. Financial institutions vary widely in size and presence, ranging from some of the world’s largest global companies with thousands of employees and many billions of dollars in assets to community banks and credit unions with a small number of employees serving individual communities. Whether an individual savings account, financial derivatives, credit extended to a large organization, or investments made to a foreign country, these products allow customers to deposit funds and make payments to other parties; provide credit and liquidity to customers; invest funds for both long and short periods; transfer financial risks between customers.

Workers who are needed to provide consumer access to banking and lending services, including ATMs, and to move currency and payments (e.g., armored cash carriers)

Workers who support financial operations, such as those staffing data and security operations centers.

CHEMICAL

Sector Profile

The Chemical Sector—composed of a complex, global supply chain—converts various raw materials into diverse products that are essential to modern life. Based on the end product produced, the sector can be divided into five main segments, each of which has distinct characteristics, growth dynamics, markets, new developments, and issues: basic chemicals; specialty chemicals; agricultural chemicals; pharmaceuticals; consumer products.

Workers supporting the safe transportation of chemicals, including those supporting tank truck cleaning facilities and workers who manufacture packaging items.

Workers supporting the production of protective cleaning and medical solutions, personal protective equipment, and packaging that prevents the contamination of food, water, medicine, among other essential products.

Workers supporting the operation and maintenance of facilities (particularly those with high-risk chemicals and/ or sites that cannot be shut down) whose work cannot be done remotely and requires the presence of highly trained personnel to ensure safe operations, including plant contract workers who provide inspections.

Workers who support the production and transportation of chlorine and alkali manufacturing, single-use plastics, and packaging that prevents the contamination or supports the continued manufacture of food, water, medicine, and other essential products, including glass container manufacturing.

REAL ESTATE AND MORTGAGE

Sector Profile

There are thousands of real estate and mortgage transactions currently pending in Washington State. Most transactions are for residential properties, with people already in transition out of/into new residences. Significant legal liability and displacement (if not homelessness), could occur if these transactions do not close. Pending/under contract sales should be allowed to close, using remote/electronic means whenever possible, and following social distancing guidelines if remote/electronic closing cannot occur. For homeowners in distress related to the COVID-19 event, it is important that they have the option to sell their home or pursue a refinance or residential mortgage loan modification.

While real estate activities along with mortgage lending activities have been approved as essential activities under the Proclamation, such activities shall only be permitted under the following restrictions and limitations:

In-person meetings with customers are prohibited except when necessary for a customer to view a property or sign necessary documents;

No real estate open houses shall be permitted;

Property viewings, inspections, appraisals, and final walk-throughs shall be arranged by appointment and limited to no more than two people on-site at any one time, exercising social distancing at all times;

Except for the limited exceptions authorized above, all new real estate listings shall be facilitated remotely; and

All real estate and mortgage activities must meet social distancing and appropriate health and worker protection measures before proceeding.

Essential Workforce

Appraisers, settlement agents and escrow officers, property inspectors, mortgage loan originators, processors, and underwriters, and other necessary office personnel including IT professionals, and back-office staff necessary to maintain office operations, along with those government workers necessary to review real estate excise tax and record documents.

Commercial and household goods moving companies are deemed essential, but only when needed to ensure that people remain in housing, that contracts are fulfilled, or that vulnerable individuals are removed from danger. All moving work must be conducted with the fewest employees possible and follow the social distancing and sanitation measures set forth in Proclamation 20-25.

MORTUARY, FUNERAL, EMBALMER, AND CEMETERY SERVICES

Sector Profile

Licensed funeral homes and cemeteries may conduct funeral services in a funeral home or graveside under the following conditions:

Funerals are only attended by immediate family members of the deceased.

The family members in attendance must maintain proper social distancing, defined by the Centers for Disease Control as staying six feet apart.

Essential Workforce

DEFENSE INDUSTRIAL BASE

Sector Profile

The Defense Industrial Base Sector is the worldwide industrial complex that enables research and development, as well as design, production, delivery, and maintenance of military weapons systems, subsystems, and components or parts, to meet U.S. military requirements. The Defense Industrial Base partnership consists of Department of Defense components, Defense Industrial Base companies and their subcontractors who perform under contract to the Department of Defense, companies providing incidental materials and services to the Department of Defense, and government-owned/contractor- operated and government-owned/government-operated facilities. Defense Industrial Base companies include domestic and foreign entities, with production assets located in many countries. The sector provides products and services that are essential to mobilize, deploy, and sustain military operations.

Essential Workforce

Workers who support the essential services required to meet national security commitments to the federal government and U.S. Military. These individuals include but are not limited to, aerospace; mechanical and software engineers, manufacturing/production workers; IT support; security staff; security personnel; intelligence support, aircraft and weapon system mechanics and maintainers.

Personnel working for companies, and their subcontractors, who perform under contract to the Department of Defense providing materials and services to the Department of Defense, and government-owned/contractor-operated and government-owned/government-operated facilities.